A wolf, seeing a lamb drinking at a river, wanted some plausible pretext to devour him. So, although he himself was upstream, he accused the lamb of muddying the water and stopping him from drinking. The lamb answered that he drank only with the tips of his lips, and that besides, being downstream, he could not muddy the water above him. Having missed his mark, the wolf went on, "But last year you insulted my father." "I wasn't even born then," replied the lamb. Then the wolf said, "However readily you clear yourself, I shall eat you all the same."
Against those bent on doing harm, even the fairest defence is useless.
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